HOW we come together
Colin @No Impact Man has an interesting post today, all about the ways in which we use things - technology, coal-fired power plants, apples, etc. - and how those choices can affect whether these things enrich or degrade our lives. He starts out pretty general, making the point that anything, no matter how ostensibly bad for us it seems, could be good if it serves an enriching purpose with a higher value than the damage it causes. However, it's the last half of this post (and, the embedded video) that's really the most important part to me. I'm not going to rehash his post - inevitably, his version will be better - but I'd like to build on it. I've been thinking quite a bit lately about my own involvement in various movements to improve the environment, rebase the economy on regional trade, reduce the adverse impact our lives have on the planet and its people, and so forth. Basically, my involvement to date has been to read a lot, digest the information and form some opinions about what we should be striving ...
Posted on September 10, 2008 3:43:59 PM EDT
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I -Heart- My Head Lamp
Yeah, this is just a cheesy ode-to-a-product post. Get over it. I love my headlamp, that I got for Christmas from my brother-in-law last year. It's similar to this one, though the specific model isn't important. What's important is what it allows me to do with less stress in my life, which is just about everything having to do with darkness (physical darkness, not like fighting the agents of evil or anything). I use my headlamp all the time for coffee roasting, grilling, and reading - the red LED setting is particularly nice to read by when I don't want to keep Emily awake. When the circumstances call for it, I've been known to use it for wiring, plumbing, and task lighting when I'm running my table saw. I even use it to take out the trash at times. I didn't buy it, but if I had it would be the best $20 or less I'd ever spent. Sure, it makes me look like a dork. Whatever. Some things are worth that, and this is one of them. So, Lucas, if you're reading, thanks for the headlamp.
Posted on September 9, 2008 1:28:25 PM EDT
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Republicans: What About Kid Energy?
The Republican party seems intent to frame the debate about energy - the security of our supply, its renewable-ness, etc - around gas prices. They claim that we should be pulling out all the stoppers to keep the power grid juiced up, and claim to support an "all of the above" attitude to energy production. In reality, they've been using this refrain as a wedge to demand that offshore oil drilling in the U.S. be opened up. Incidentally all this oil would be sold on the world market, not reserved for our own use, so while it's debatable how much it would help gas prices, it's a sure-thing that it would improve the profits of the oil companies that are already wallowing in money. If it's true that they're interested in all comers as it relates to energy production, let's put it to the test: Let's hook up electrical generators to treadmills and stationary bikes, put them in the gyms of our public schools, and make children generate the electricity we use! Hell, I can remember my mom saying time and again that ...
Posted on September 3, 2008 2:38:16 PM EDT
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Locavores vs. Local Economy
In his article here, Steven Dubner tries to argue against local food, in favor of the globalized food chain we have today. His argument seems to be that we can all have the best products in the world - not to mention the highest economic output - if we pick and choose from the best producers without regard to geography. He, and the person who apparently inspired the post with her question, illustrates this by relating two failed attempts at producing goods locally instead of buying them. His attempt to make sherbet resulted in an exorbitant amount of money spent on a not-so-good result. Then, there's the friend of the woman who inspired the post, who tried to make a dress for herself, and wound up spending something like four times as much on a product with a crooked hem. Therefore, we must support the economic efficiency of globalism. It's clearly the better alternative. But consider: what experience does Mr. Dubner have with producing ice cream? What experience did the other woman have with making dresses? ...
Posted on August 29, 2008 2:45:55 PM EDT
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An Interesting Thought Experiment
Ever since I read The Wal-Mart Effect, by Charles Fishman, I've had a half-thought nagging at the back of my mind. I think today is the birthday of that thought; I think I can finally put it into words. The problem I have with Wal-Mart - and every other national chain store I've read about, including Walgreen's, Best Buy, Target, Home Depot, and others - is that it abstracts the economy away from you and me. What do I mean by this? That's the hard part, the part I've been trying to articulate to myself for a couple years now. Think of an economic exchange between some supplier and some consumer on a face-to-face basis. It may help to think about a waiter at a local restaurant, for example. If the waiter is lazy, and the service is horrible, then from an economics standpoint, you should give him a lower tip than if he performed stellarly, or even up to expectations. This is basic vote-with-your-dolla...
Posted on August 28, 2008 1:18:32 PM EDT
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